This
episode marks the debut of one of Gonzo's trademarks. Him rapidly
rushing on camera with a "WHOOSH" sound effect.

This
is John Lovelady and Eren Ozker's final episode. Only the core
five of Jim Henson, Frank Oz, Jerry Nelson, Richard Hunt, and
Dave Goelz will return for season two joined later in the second
year by an uncredited Louise Gold.

Behind
the scenes, Jack Burns will retire from the show bumping longtime
Henson Associate Jerry Juhl up to the position of head writer.
We'll see the significant effects these changes have on the show
when The Muppet Show Episode Guides returns with its look at Season
Two.

Eren
leaves the show to have a child and John will resurface in the
'80's as a puppeteer for a non-Henson puppet show called "The
Great Space Coaster" along with some guy named Kevin Clash.

Mummenschanz
- Episode 24

Brian Henson: "Hi,
I'm Brian Henson. The Muppet Show was originally shot in Elstree just north
of London and it was a wonderful process to watch. You'd walk out of these dingy
London streets and then you'd go inside the station - this brightly colored
crazy, frenetic energy. The way the show was shot, it took three frantic days
to shoot each episode."

"One thing
that was amazing is the audience for some reason always thought that the show
was shot live which always astounded me because if you watch The Muppet Show,
every shot is a special effect, there's a little trick going on everywhere and
it took a lot of time and a lot of effort to pull that together. Of course the
real audience for The Muppet Show as you see in the show is a bunch of Muppet
monsters and various creatures. We always knew they would laugh at the right
times. The monsters in the audience particularly enjoyed this show and I hope
you do too. Enjoy."

OPENING
THEME

Fozzie's
joke: "Thirty days has September, April, June, and my cousin
Fred who gets out on Wednesday."

Kermit
welcomes the crowd, announces tonight's guests are the masked
theater group, the Mummenschanz and introduces Floyd and Scooter
with "Mr. Bassman".

MUSICAL
NUMBER - "MR. BASSMAN"

Scooter
sings a duet with Floyd where he asks him to teach him how to
be a bassman by simulating the bass notes vocally.

[Jerry
Nelson uses a different voice for Floyd on this song perhaps because
it was easier to do the vocal bass parts. This song appears on
the original Muppet
Show soundtrack, Muppet
Favorites, and Muppet
Hits where Scooter celebrates learning how to be a bassman
with a high-pitched "YEAH!"]"

BALCONY

STATLER:
Genius! Genius!

WALDORF:
Author! Author!

STATLER:
A work of art!

WALDORF:
Brilliant!

STATLER:
Uh - what was that about?

WALDORF:
Oh it was about - uh - a minute and a half.

BACKSTAGE

Miss
Piggy is elated to find a love note on her dressing room door
stating that the author can no longer hide his feelings and is
waiting inside. Ecstatic at finally being able to be with her
frog she flings open the door to find a lovestruck Gonzo.

CURTAIN

Kermit
introduces the Mummenschanz, "distant cousins of the Muppets".

MUMMENSCHANZ'
OPENING ACT

A
man and a woman express their feelings for each other by tearing
off pages of notepads on their faces featuring different eyes
and mouths.

BALCONY

WALDORF:
Fantastic! Incredible! They remind me of puppets.

STATLER:
Puppets! I've always hated puppets.

WALDORF:
You're a traitor to your class!

STATLER:
What class? I never even graduated!

BACKSTAGE

Oblivious
to the fact that Gonzo's pursuing Piggy with the same frightening
obsessive zeal in which the pig chases the frog, she reacts quite
violently to being an unwanted object of affection.

SKETCH
- "THE LIBRARY"

In
a hilarious sketch with no dialogue, a group of Muppets have a
hard time being quiet in the library in between Fozzie's pencil
tapping, Piggy's coughing, Hilda's newspaper turning and Nigel's
chewing. Librarian Zelda Rose finally takes charge, grabs a ruler
and "conducts" the Muppets to sound their various noises
to the tune of "The Blue Danube". Wayne & Wanda
attempt to dance and are hushed by the others.

[PUPPETEER
SPOTTING: Wanda's puppeteer's face can be seen briefly underneath
her. This sketch was later marketed on its own as a Muppet Meeting
Film.]

SHORT
MUMMENSCHANZ BITS

Kermit
introduces three quick pieces from The Mummenschanz doing strange
looking things: a buglike creature uprighting itself, a Mummenschanz
fly, and a huge ball that eats a jumping jack.

AT
THE DANCE

MILDRED:
There is such riffraff here? Wouldn't you rather be associated
with a higher class of people?

GEORGE:
Yeah, but you were the only one not dancin'.

UK
SKIT: MUSICAL NUMBER - "WHEN I'M NOT NEAR THE FISH I LOVE"

A
Muppet eel proclaims his love for fellow fish in song surrounded
by a background of real fish. [Jim Henson delivers such lines
as "For herring, I'm caring/For tuna, I swoon-a" in
such a manner as only he can!]

BALCONY

Waldorf
sneezes and his face is sucked inward! Statler has to blow in
his ear to set him back to normal.

TALK
SPOT

Kermit
almost calls off the talk spot since the Mummenschanz are mute.
However the trio finds alternate ways to communicate.

BALCONY

WALDORF:
Bravo! Bravo!

STATLER:
What are you bravo-ing about?

WALDORF:
That performance! It was first rate.

STATLER:
Yes, it was good. But only one act I've ever seen deserved a
bravo.

WALDORF:
Oh really, who was that?

STATLER:
Lady Beth Macintosh and her singing parakeet. I'll never forget
her closing night at the Palace.

WALDORF:
Really? What happened?

STATLER:
Well, she fell into a box of birdseed just before going on stage
and she was pecked to death by the parakeet!

WALDORF:
That's a hard act to follow.

STATLER:
Yeah well, I was there and I cried.

WALDORF:
Really? What did you cry?

STATLER:
Bravo! Bravo!

BACKSTAGE

Kermit
conspires with Gonzo to get Piggy to agree to a date with him.

KERMIT:
...A quiet candlelit meal with soft music, perhaps some wine...and
then go dancing and walk by the river in the moonlight...

PIGGY:
Oh I would love those things, my dear!

KERMIT:
GOOD! So would Gonzo here...

CURTAIN

Sam
quotes Lenard Bernstein's assessment of Wayne & Wanda..."'These
two are a manifestation of the musical mediocrity that passes
for talent in our troubled times'...hmm...nice review!"

WAYNE
& WANDA

It's
only a paper moon, but it falls down on Wayne nonetheless. [This
is the duo's last appearance on the show - we learn later in Season
Four that Kermit had fired them. Wanda won't be seen again until
a special guest appearance in that episode - mainly due to puppeteer
Eren Ozker's departure from the cast - but Wayne will remain on
the show as a solo performer.]

VENDAFACE

Statler
visits the Vendaface to have his looks rearranged. The machine
doesn't accomplish anything that Waldorf couldn't have done though!

BACKSTAGE

Piggy
coerces an apology out of Kermit, but stops short of getting Kermit
to kiss and make up. All the while, Gonzo still follows her around
like a homeless puppy. Exasperated by both men, Piggy simultaneously
karate chops them with one arm each.

NEWS
FLASH

The
Newsman reports on Sergei Lenofsky's 196th birthday celebration
in a piece that was obviously held over from earlier in the season
since The Newsman appears without glasses and his original deeper
voice.

CURTAIN

Kermit
brings on the Mummenschanz for their final performance.

MUMMENSCHANZ'
CLOSING ACT

In
a rather elegant conceit on conceit, two creatures with clay faces
attempt to shape themselves into attractive beings - one with
more initial success than the other.

CURTAIN

Miss
Piggy apologizes for her temper tantrum but is angered into one
final demonstration of Pig Power! The Mummenschanz trio take an
unmasked bow.

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